‘Opt-out’ consent for organ donation in England consultation

Introducing ‘opt-out’ consent for organ and tissue donation in England

Department of Health and Social Care

Opens: 12 December 2017
Closes: 6 March 2018

Summary

The government wants views from as many people as possible on plans to make it easier for people to give consent to be an organ donor.

Consultation description

The Department of Health and Social Care have launched a consultation about organ and tissue donation. The government wants to know what people think about proposed changes in which people are considered willing to be an organ donor after their death, unless they have ‘opted out’.

They want to find out what people think of how the changes to the system should be made, and what else they think the government needs to consider.

The defining issues of the new system are:

how much say families have in their deceased relative’s decision to donate their organs

when exemptions to ‘opt-out’ would be needed, and what safeguards would be necessary

how a new system might affect certain groups depending on age, disability, race or faith